Frankie Grande’s watches Ariana Grande’s Oscars performance (left); Ariana Grande at the 2025 Oscars. Photo:
Frankie Grande/Instagram; Rich Polk/Penske Media via Getty
Frankie Grande got a little teary-eyed over his little sister’s Oscars performance!
Ariana Grande and her Wicked costar Cynthia Erivo gave a powerful performance to open the 97th Academy Awards on Sunday, March 2, singing from three Wizard of Oz adaptations — the 1939 film, the 1975 Broadway production of The Wiz and Wicked, which debuted in 2024. Frankie was watching the awards show from home with a group of friends, and as his sister took the stage, he couldn’t contain his excitement.
Ariana Grande at the 2025 Oscars. Frank Micelotta/Disney via Getty
In a video posted to Instagram, Frankie, 42, blinked back tears as Ariana and Erivo sang “Defying Gravity.”
“Well, that’s the gay superbowl,” Frankie wrote in the post’s caption. “Best opening to an Oscar’s ever! Of all time! 👠🫧🌈🧹.”
As the video continued, Frankie and his friends whooped and cheered for Erivo as she hit the final, impossibly high notes of the song, seemingly equally thrilled to witness Ariana’s costar’s big moment. Ariana had stepped off to the side of the stage, still singing, but giving Erivo the solo spotlight for the show-stopping final moments of “Defying Gravity.”
All eyes in the room were glued to the screen as the performance concluded, and Frankie turned the camera around as he sobbed and yelled, “are you f—— kidding me?!”
Ariana Grande at the 2025 Oscars. Frank Micelotta/Disney via Getty
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Ariana, 31, and Erivo, 38, starred in Wicked as Glinda and Elphaba, respectively. They’ll also star in the film’s second part, Wicked: For Good, set to release Nov. 21, 2025.
At the Oscars, Wicked took home two awards — one for Best Costume Design for Paul Tazewell and Best Production Design for Lee Sandales and Nathan Crowley.
